System and method for tracking wellsite equipment maintenance data

ABSTRACT

A maintenance system and method are presented. The maintenance system includes a plurality of wellsite equipment located at or nearby a wellsite, and a communication interface device for monitoring data that is representative of a health status of the equipment. The system further includes a database comprising prior health status of the equipment; and a central data server in communication with the database and capable of communicating with the communication interface device for generating analysis of the equipment, wherein said analysis includes comparing the monitored data with the prior health status to prescribe if maintenance is required

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The current application is based on and claims the benefit of priorityfrom U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/428,376, filed on Dec.30, 2010; the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated byreference.

BACKGROUND

The statements made herein merely provide information related to thepresent disclosure and may not constitute prior art, and may describesome embodiments illustrating the invention.

Embodiments disclosed herein generally relate to systems or methods forfacilitating, capturing, tracking, synthesizing, analyzing, managingand/or utilizing wellsite maintenance data for wellsite equipment.Embodiments disclosed herein also relate to systems or methods fordetermining degradation conditions of wellsite equipment or predictingresidual life of wellsite equipment before, during, and after anoilfield operation. Examples of such oilfield operations include, butare not limited to, hydraulic fracturing, acid stimulation, cementing,etc.

In some embodiments, the wellsite equipment being maintained includespositive displacement pumps, sometimes referred to as reciprocatingpumps. Positive displacement pumps are generally used in oilfieldoperations to pump fluids into a wellbore and the surrounding reservoir.

A given reciprocating pump may comprise one or more pump chambers thateach receive a reciprocating plunger. When multiple chambers areenclosed in a reciprocating pump, the reciprocating pump is also calleda multiplex pump. In any event, in a typical reciprocating pump, as theplunger is moved in one direction by the rotating crankshaft, fluid isdrawn into the pump chamber through a one-way suction valve. Uponreversal of the plunger motion, the suction valve is closed and thefluid is forced outwardly through a discharge valve. The continuedreciprocation of the plunger continues the process of drawing fluid intothe pump and discharging fluid from the pump. The discharged fluid canbe routed through tubing to a desired location, such as into a wellbore.

Typically, multiplex pumps have two sections: (a) a power end, the motorassembly that drives the pump plungers (the driveline and transmissionare parts of the power end); and (b) a fluid end, the pump containerthat holds and discharges pressurized fluid. In triplex pumps, the fluidend has three fluid cylinders. In quintuplex pumps, the fluid end hasfive fluid cylinders. A fluid end may comprise a single block having allcylinders bored therein, commonly referred to as a monoblock fluid end.Alternatively, each individual cylinder can be bored in a single block,and subsequently multiple blocks are connected together to form anassembled fluid end, commonly referred to as a split fluid end.Embodiments of the current disclosure can be applied to multiplex pumpswith monoblock fluid ends, split fluid ends, or other variationsthereof.

One particularly useful application of the multiplex pump is hydraulicfracturing, where a fluid is pumped down a wellbore at a flow rate andpressure sufficient to fracture a subterranean formation. After thefracture is created or, optionally, in conjunction with the creation ofthe fracture, proppants may be injected into the wellbore and into thefracture. The proppant is a particulate material added to the pumpedfluid to produce a slurry, which is often very abrasive and/orcorrosive. Pumping this slurry at the required flow rate and pressure isa severe pump duty. In fracturing operations each pump may be requiredto pump up to twenty barrels per minute at pressures up to 20,000 psi.The pumps for this application are quite large and are frequently movedto the oilfield on semi-trailer trucks or the like. Many times a singlemultiplex pump will occupy the entire truck trailer. These pumps areconnected together at the well site to produce a pumping system whichmay include several multiplex pumps. A sufficient number of pumps areconnected to a common line to produce the desired volume and pressureoutput. For example, some fracturing jobs have required up to 36 pumps.

Since fracturing operations are desirably conducted on a continuousbasis, the disruption of a fracture treatment because of a failure ofsurface equipment is costly, time consuming, inefficient, andunproductive. Further, when such massive pumps are used, it is difficultin some instances to determine, in the event of a pump failure, whichpump has failed. Because of the severe pump duty and the frequentfailure rate of such pumps, it is normal to take thirty to one hundredpercent excess pump capacity to each fracture site. The necessity forthe excess pump capacity requires additional capital to acquire theadditional multiplex pumps and considerable expense to maintain theadditional pumps and to haul them to the site. Therefore, multiplexpumps and other surface equipment are frequently disassembled andinspected before and after each fracture treatment and, in someinstances, routinely rebuilt before or after each fracture treatment inan attempt to avoid equipment failures during subsequent fracturetreatments.

Traditionally, wellsite maintenance data of multiplex pumps or any otherwellsite equipment is recorded manually on paper or in Excelspreadsheets by field engineers at the wellsite. The maintenance data isthen communicated from the wellsite to a central data location viatelephone or e-mail. Sometimes, the maintenance data is not communicatedto the central data location at all or gets lost during transmission. Ifthe wellsite data safely arrives at the central data location, it istraditionally entered into a variety of computer databases by clerks oradministrators at the central data location. One prominent issueassociated with the traditional method is that the data capturing andtransmitting process is not automated and any breakdown in the processmay cause delay or failure to the equipment. Another problem with theconventional method is that it is not uniformly executed acrossoperations; therefore, the data received at the center may be incorrector missing critical information. When the maintenance data is incompleteor inaccurate, it is difficult for the management to determine whatmaintenance is needed, when maintenance is needed, and which equipment(or a component of equipment) requires maintenance, where the equipmentis currently located, which location(s) the equipment has been deployedin its life, etc.

In these respects, the current disclosure aims to provide a method andsystem to capture maintenance data at the wellsite that addresses theabove-mentioned problems, and more specifically the current disclosurerelates to methods and systems to facilitate, capture, track, and usewellsite maintenance data so that appropriate maintenance can beprescribed timely, accurately, and effectively, and equipment failureduring field operations can be minimized or eliminated. The followingdetailed description is provided in the context of fracturing operationsusing triplex pumps. However, it should be noted that embodiments of thecurrent disclosure can be applied to any other oilfield operation orwellsite equipment operation.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, one or moreembodiments relate to a maintenance system preferably comprising aplurality of wellsite equipment located at or nearby a wellsite, acommunication interface device for monitoring data that isrepresentative of a health status of the equipment, and a databasecomprising prior health status of the equipment. The system furthercomprises a central data server in communication with the database andcapable of communicating with the communication interface device forgenerating analysis of the equipment. Such analysis includes at least,comparing the monitored data with the prior health status to prescribeif maintenance is required.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, one or moreembodiments relate to a maintenance system for planning maintenance andoperation of wellsite equipment units. The maintenance system preferablycomprises a fleet of monitored wellsite equipment units distributed overa geographical area, a communication interface device located at ornearby a wellsite where at least one of the fleet of monitored wellsiteequipment units are located, and a communication network for sending andreceiving the data between the communication interface device and acentral data server. The communication interface device preferablycomprises hardware and software for monitoring data that isrepresentative of a health status of the equipment. The central dataserver is preferably capable of identifying if the monitored wellsiteequipment units are in operation, not in operation or being maintainedin order to plan maintenance and operation of the fleet of monitoredwellsite equipment units.

In one embodiment, the system of the current disclosure comprises acomputer located at or nearby a wellsite, a computer network (wired,wireless, satellite, Bgan, etc.), and a central data server that islocated away from the wellsite and connected to the computer via thecomputer network. The equipment operator, field supervisor and otherfield personnel may enter into the computer wellsite equipmentmaintenance data such as job observations and maintenance performedduring the job, etc. Such maintenance data can be subsequentlytransmitted to the central data server via the computer network forstorage and retrieval. The central data server contains both the currentand historic data of the wellsite equipment, is connected to computersdeployed at various wellsites, and keeps maintenance data in wellsitecomputers in synchronization with maintenance data in the central dataserver.

Optionally, the system further includes a handheld input device that canbe carried by a field operator while working at the wellsite. The fieldoperator can input data into the handheld device at a location nearby apiece of oilfield equipment that is under inspection or maintenance. Thefield operator can then bring the handheld device to a location nearbythe computer to transmit the data recorded in the handheld device to thewellsite computer. The handheld device may also be equipped with networkconnecting capability so that it can be directly connected to thecomputer and/or the central data server via the computer network.

In one embodiment, the wellsite computer is a touch screen computer witha graphic interface; therefore the field operator can input data, issuecommand, print work order, etc. without the need of a keyboard, a mouse,or other external data entry devices.

In one embodiment, a data acquisition program is provided in thecomputer and/or the handheld input device so that wellsite equipmentmaintenance data can be entered into the computer and/or the handheldinput device. In one embodiment, a wellsite modeling program is providedin the computer and/or the handheld input device so that a computermodel can be generated at the wellsite based on the data available atthe time to reflect the healthy condition of the wellsite equipment andthe estimated maintenance schedule for the wellsite equipment.

In one embodiment, the system and method of the current disclosurecomprises a remote control electronic device that is configured tooperate wellsite equipment. This allows pumps to be controlled from asingle place remote from the equipment, the activities of which will beultimately entered into touch screen computer and/or the handheld inputdevice.

In one embodiment, the computer and/or the handheld device is providedat a maintenance shop that is located away from the wellsite. Datacaptured at the maintenance shop is transmitted to the central dataserver and combined with data captured at the wellsite. The datacontained in the central data server can be accessed and downloaded foruse by various stakeholders, including but not limited to themaintenance shop, equipment vendors, engineering design centers,logistics, procurement, the district that manages the operation, and thefield.

The current disclosure has several advantages. The network connectionensures that equipment maintenance data is captured timely,consistently, and continuously. Accordingly, the field management canmonitor the equipment regularly, measure deterioration at any moment,and intervene as early as possible when there is a risk of equipmentbreakdown. The central data server will combine the knowledge of theequipment from all sources, including jobs performed by the equipment,maintenance performed on the equipment, materials and supplies used inthe equipment, major component breakdown, equipment appearance and otherobservations, current location of the equipment, historic locations ofthe equipment, engineers who worked on the equipment, etc. Equipmentdata is constantly in synchronization with the maintenance data; jobdata is constantly in synchronization with the maintenance data.Equipment conditions and equipment location can be actively monitoredand maintenance schedules can be appropriately devised.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

To assist those of ordinary skill in the relevant art in making andusing the subject matter hereof, reference is made to the appendeddrawings, which are not intended to be drawn to scale, and in which likereference numerals are intended to refer to similar elements forconsistency. For purposes of clarity, not every component may be labeledin every drawing.

FIG. 1 is a schematic representation depicting wellsite equipment forperforming an oilfield operation on a well in accordance with anexemplary embodiment disclosed herein.

FIG. 2 is a schematic representation depicting an oilfield operation inaccordance with an exemplary embodiment disclosed herein.

FIG. 3 is a schematic flow diagram illustrating health monitoring of anoilfield operation in accordance with an embodiment disclosed herein.

FIGS. 4.1-4.7 are schematic illustrations depicting example screenshotsof a communication interface in accordance with an embodiment disclosedherein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Specific embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described indetail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It is to beunderstood that the various embodiments of the invention, althoughdifferent, are not necessarily mutually exclusive. For example, aparticular feature, structure, or characteristic described herein inconnection with one embodiment may be implemented within otherembodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention. Further, in the following detailed description of embodimentsof the present disclosure, numerous specific details are set forth inorder to provide a more thorough understanding of the invention.However, it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art thatthe embodiments disclosed herein may be practiced without these specificdetails. In other instances, well-known features have not been describedin detail to avoid unnecessarily complicating the description.

It should also be noted that in the development of any such actualembodiment, numerous decisions specific to circumstance must be made toachieve the developer's specific goals, such as compliance withsystem-related and business-related constraints, which will vary fromone implementation to another. Moreover, it will be appreciated thatsuch a development effort might be complex and time-consuming but wouldnevertheless be a routine undertaking for those of ordinary skill in theart having the benefit of this disclosure.

The terminology and phraseology used herein is solely used fordescriptive purposes and should not be construed as limiting in scope.Language such as “including,” “comprising,” “having,” “containing,” or“involving,” and variations thereof, is intended to be broad andencompass the subject matter listed thereafter, equivalents, andadditional subject matter not recited.

Furthermore, the description and examples are presented solely for thepurpose of illustrating the different embodiments, and should not beconstrued as a limitation to the scope and applicability. While anycomposition or structure may be described herein as comprising certainmaterials, it should be understood that the composition could optionallycomprise two or more different materials. In addition, the compositionor structure can also comprise some components other than the onesalready cited. Although some of the following discussion emphasizesfracturing, the compositions and methods may be used in any welltreatment in which diversion is needed. Examples include fracturing,acidizing, water control, chemical treatments, and wellbore fluidisolation and containment. Embodiments will be described for hydrocarbonproduction wells, but it is to be understood that they may be used forwells for production of other fluids, such as water or carbon dioxide,or, for example, for injection or storage wells. It should also beunderstood that throughout this specification, when a range is describedas being useful, or suitable, or the like, it is intended that any andevery value within the range, including the end points, is to beconsidered as having been stated. Furthermore, each numerical valueshould be read once as modified by the term “about” (unless alreadyexpressly so modified) and then read again as not to be so modifiedunless otherwise stated in context. For example, “a range of from 1 to10” is to be read as indicating each and every possible number along thecontinuum between about 1 and about 10. In other words, when a certainrange is expressed, even if only a few specific data points areexplicitly identified or referred to within the range, or even when nodata points are referred to within the range, it is to be understoodthat the inventors appreciate and understand that any and all datapoints within the range are to be considered to have been specified, andthat the inventors have possession of the entire range and all pointswithin the range.

Referring to the drawings, illustrations and pictures, and in particularFIG. 1, one example of a monitored piece of wellsite equipment isillustrated therein. A plunger pump 101 is depicted for pumping a fluidfrom a well surface to a wellbore. As shown, the plunger pump 101 ismounted on a standard trailer 102 for ease of transportation by atractor 104. The plunger pump 101 includes a prime mover 106 that drivesa crankshaft through a transmission 110 and a drive shaft 112. Thecrankshaft, in turn, drives one or more plungers toward and away from achamber in the pump fluid end 108 in order to create pressureoscillations of high and low pressures in the chamber. These pressureoscillations allow the pump to receive a fluid at a low pressure anddischarge it at a high pressure via one way valves (also called checkvalves). Also connected to the prime mover 106 is a radiator 114 forcooling the prime mover 106. In addition, the plunger pump fluid end 108includes an intake pipe 116 for receiving fluid at a low pressure and adischarge pipe 118 for discharging fluid at a high pressure.

A field operator, equipment operator or field engineer 125 is depictedtherein for recording maintenance data, and/or performing maintenanceoperations. For example, the field operator 125 may check the oil,change the transmission fluid, change the seals and check for leakage,among many other maintenance related operations known in the art. Aswill be explained in more detail below, the engineer 125 may acquireand/or record data relating to maintenance using a handheld dataacquisition device, computer, touch screen computer or communicationinterface device 400. The field operator 125 can input data into thehandheld device 400 at a location nearby the wellsite equipment 101under inspection or maintenance. The field operator 125 can thentransmit the acquired data to a central data server using either anearby computer, or a communication network if the communicationinterface device 400 is equipped with network connecting capability.

Referring now to FIG. 2, one example of an oilfield operation is shownwith a field operator 125 depicted therein for recording maintenance andoperational data on a communication interface device 400, and/orperforming maintenance in accordance with a prescribed maintenance plan.A pumping system 200 is shown for pumping a fluid from a surface 118 ofa well 120 to a wellbore 122 during an oilfield operation. In thisparticular example, the operation is a hydraulic fracturing operation,and hence the fluid pumped is a fracturing fluid. As shown, the pumpsystem 200 includes a plurality of water tanks 221, which feed water toa gel maker 223. The gel maker 223 combines water from the tanks 221with a gelling agent to form a gel. The gel is then sent to a blender225 where it is mixed with a proppant from a proppant feeder 227 to forma fracturing fluid. The gelling agent increases the viscosity of thefracturing fluid and allows the proppant to be suspended in thefracturing fluid. It may also act as a friction reducing agent to allowhigher pump rates with less frictional pressure.

The fracturing fluid is then pumped at low pressure (for example, around60 to 120 psi) from the blender 225 to a plurality of plunger pumps 201as shown by solid lines 212. Note that each plunger pump 201 in theembodiment of FIG. 2 may have the same or a similar configuration as theplunger pump 101 shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 2, each plunger pump201 receives the fracturing fluid at a low pressure and discharges it toa common manifold 210 (sometimes called a missile trailer or missile) ata high pressure as shown by dashed lines 214. The missile 210 thendirects the fracturing fluid from the plunger pumps 201 to the wellbore122 as shown by solid line 215.

In a typical hydraulic fracturing operation, an estimate of the wellpressure and the flow rate required to create the desired side fracturesin the wellbore is calculated. Based on this calculation, the amount ofhydraulic horsepower needed from the pumping system in order to carryout the fracturing operation is determined. For example, if it isestimated that the well pressure and the required flow rate are 6000 psi(pounds per square inch) and 68 BPM (Barrels Per Minute), then the pumpsystem 200 would need to supply 10,000 hydraulic horsepower to thefracturing fluid (i.e., 6000*68/40.8).

In one embodiment, the prime mover 106 in each plunger pump 201 is anengine with a maximum rating of 2250 brake horsepower, which, whenaccounting for losses (typically about 3% for plunger pumps in hydraulicfracturing operations), allows each plunger pump 201 to supply a maximumof about 2182 hydraulic horsepower to the fracturing fluid. Therefore,in order to supply 10,000 hydraulic horsepower to a fracturing fluid,the pump system 200 of FIG. 2 would require at least five plunger pumps201.

However, in order to prevent an overload of the transmission 110,between the engine 106 and the fluid end 108 of each plunger pump 201,each plunger pump 201 is normally operated well under its maximumoperating capacity. Operating the pumps under their operating capacityalso allows for one pump to fail and the remaining pumps to be run at ahigher speed in order to make up for the absence of the failed pump.

As such in the example of a fracturing operation requiring 10,000hydraulic horsepower, bringing ten plunger pumps 201 to the wellsiteenables each pump engine 106 to be operated at about 1030 brakehorsepower (about half of its maximum) in order to supply 1000 hydraulichorsepower individually and 10,000 hydraulic horsepower collectively tothe fracturing fluid. On the other hand, if only nine pumps 201 arebrought to the wellsite, or if one of the pumps fails, then each of thenine pump engines 106 would be operated at about 1145 brake horsepowerin order to supply the required 10,000 hydraulic horsepower to thefracturing fluid. As shown, a computerized control system 229 may beemployed to direct the entire pump system 200 for the duration of thefracturing operation.

In performing the example operation as described above at the requiredpressure, flow rate, and hydraulic horsepower, numerous opportunitiesfor equipment failure are present. Accordingly, in one aspect, thecurrent disclosure provides a system and method to facilitate/captureand use wellsite maintenance data that allows an understanding of thestate of equipment, location of equipment and equipment maintenancecost. In another aspect, the current disclosure provides a system andmethod to facilitate/capture and use wellsite maintenance data that isuser interactive to provide a common language that is easily understoodand uses existing well site infrastructure to locate where equipment islocated. Other location identifiers such as GPS, barcode, RFID-Tag, etc.are not required, but optional. In a further aspect, the currentdisclosure provides a system and method to facilitate/capture and usewellsite maintenance data that provides a seamless method to provideeach asset with prior health status (e.g., maintenance history, usage,operational history, manufacturer information, location data, and thelike) which follows the asset when it moves from location to location,therefore reducing the need for unnecessary maintenance due to lack ofsuch health status. In yet another aspect, the current disclosureprovides a system and method to facilitate/capture and use wellsitemaintenance data that enables remote monitoring of wellsite maintenance,remote inputting of wellsite maintenance, and automated recording ofmaintenance data.

The operation of the current disclosure is further illustrated in thecontext of a health monitoring maintenance tool 300 for monitoring andmaintaining the fluid end of a multiplex pump, such as a triplex pump,in a fracturing operation. However, it should be noted that any otheroilfield operations and equipment can be used in the current disclosureas well.

Referring now to FIG. 3, an example work flow illustrating healthmonitoring 300 of an oilfield operation, or fracturing job, is shown.Allowing for some variation: in operation, the equipment 101 firstarrives at a wellsite location 302 and is rigged up 304. Upon arrival302, the equipment 101 may be registered by the field operator 125 withthe communication interface device 400, or the location of the equipment101 may be known by the field operator 125 due to other locationidentifiers, such as GPS or the like. As the location of equipment 101is known or registered, the operator sees a depiction of the equipment101 via the communication interface and may access the equipment's priorhealth status 310 along with other relevant wellsite-related data (e.g.current job description, modeling data, and the like). The prior healthstatus 310 and other relevant wellsite data may be located and stored onan off-site database, central data server or the computerized controlsystem 229, which is preferably accessible by the communicationinterface device 400 via a wireless communication network connection.Therefore, prior to performing a required well operation 308, theequipment operator 125 is provided with the necessary historicalinformation 310 in order to see what maintenance and/or testing may needto be performed pre-job 306, during the job 308, or post-job 312. Forexample, most fracturing jobs pump one or more stages in an operation308, thus post-job maintenance 312 may be required after each stage orafter a certain number of pump hours have been reached.

The field operator 125 is enabled to monitor the equipment 101throughout the job, and record both observations and maintenance. Uponcompletion of the job 308 and any required post-job maintenance 312, theequipment 101 is rigged down (i.e., disassembled) 314 and either sent toanother wellsite location 316 or sent to the shop 318 for moremaintenance and repair. The health status of the equipment is updated310′ upon each recorded maintenance operation, and the health monitoring300 may continue as the equipment 101 moves from one location to thenext.

Using the monitored maintenance data, a field supervisor or marketmanager may better manage a fleet of equipment units 101 by knowing whatunits 101 are in operation, not in operation or being maintained. Assuch, the market manager is better able to plan maintenance andoperation of the fleet of monitored wellsite equipment units.

In one embodiment, where connection to the communication network isproblematic, the communication interface device 400 may be equipped witha storage medium for saving the recorded observations and maintenance onthe device 400 until it can be uploaded to the central data server whenconnection is re-established.

In one aspect, the communication interface device 400 may generate workorders that can be sent to, or otherwise accessible by, the nextequipment operator 125 or maintenance repair person. The maintenanceperformed and recorded in the communication interface device 400 ispreferably synced through the network access to the central data server.The maintenance shop, district management, logistics and procurement canuse the data to manage the equipment maintenance, location andoperations. As equipment moves to another wellsite 316, a communicationinterface device 400 located at the new wellsite identifies theequipment's updated health status 310′ and can monitor the equipment andpreferably send data to the server.

In prescribing maintenance, the health monitoring maintenance tool 300performs such analysis based on factors, such as: what prior operationswere performed with the particular equipment; how was the equipment usedin prior operations; what are the job parameters of the currentoperation to be performed; what are the other equipment units on site tobe connected to the equipment for performing the required oilfieldoperation; how many total hours has the equipment been used; mean timebetween failure of the equipment; what reliability checks are requiredat the current hours of operation; what previous maintenance operationswere performed; what current state is the equipment in; or the like.Therefore, the field operator 125 receives a prescribed list, orchecklist, of maintenance components to be checked, or operations to beperformed 322 that is unique to the required job and unique to thespecific equipment 101. Such prescribed maintenance using the healthmonitoring maintenance tool 300 saves significant time, and is moreefficient, than the prior art method of standard checklists ofmaintenance operations to be performed for every job regardless of anyextenuating factors, such as those listed above as an example. Thus, thedisclosed health monitoring maintenance tool 300 enables the fieldoperator to deliver better service quality at a lower cost of ownership.

In monitoring the equipment 101, the health monitoring maintenance tool300 may communicate with sensors located on the equipment, for examplevia the control system 229, and monitor trends of operation, forexample: rate vs. pressure, temperature over time, pressure andtemperature over time, torque converter temperature over time, and thelike. Such data is filtered into the analysis of the health monitoringmaintenance tool 300 and used to prescribe potential maintenance orsound certain alarms when a monitored trend is outside of predeterminedboundaries.

The communication interface device 400 of the health monitoringmaintenance tool 300 preferably provides an interactive user experience.For example, the communication interface may be touch screen operable,allowing the field operator 125 to easily input maintenance-relateddata, and visually see depictions of the equipment on which maintenanceis to be performed.

Referring now to FIGS. 4.1-4.7, example screenshots of the communicationinterface device 400 are shown. In FIG. 4.1 particularly, thecommunication interface device 400 may be used to acquire the equipmentidentification 401 (e.g., serial number, asset number) of the equipment101. The equipment identification 401 may be captured using RFID tagsimplanted or printed on the equipment 101, or likewise may be capturedusing the serial number already printed on the equipment 101. Forexample, the communication interface device 400 may comprise hardwareand software for recognizing the serial number and verifying therecognition with the central data server. In operation, the equipmentoperator 125 may use a camera on the communication interface device 400to take a picture or scan the equipment identification 401 via OCR(optical character recognition). The picture, or data related to theserial number, may then be sent to the central data server where saiddata may be cross-checked with related data on a database. Once theequipment is recognized via the equipment identification 401, the healthmonitoring maintenance tool 300 sends the operator 125, via acommunication network, the prescribed list of maintenance operationsthat are required, if any. As explained herein, the operator 125 mayalso access prior health status 310 of the equipment, as well as theequipment/component user manual 320 and list of equipment components324.

In FIGS. 4.2 and 4.3, an example of a prescribed list 403 of maintenanceoperations is shown for the equipment 101 identified in FIG. 4.1. Asshown, the list 403 may be graphically illustrated as shown in FIG. 4.2and/or may be textually presented as shown in FIG. 4.3.

Referring now to FIGS. 4.4 and 4.5, an example detailed action from theprescribed list 403 is shown. Provided the action item 404, the operator125 may request that the particular item location 405 to be shown. Asshown in FIG. 4.5, an illustration/depiction of the equipment 101′ maybe presented to help the operator 125 identify what needs to be checkedor repaired. Referring to FIGS. 4.6 and 4.7, other examples of detailedactions from the prescribed list 403 are shown. In FIG. 4.6, theoperator 125 may input the oil level 406 of a particular equipment unit.And in FIG. 47, the operator 125 may input the fuel level 407 of aparticular equipment unit.

Although the present disclosure has been described with reference toexemplary embodiments and implementations thereof, the presentdisclosure is not to be limited by or to such exemplary embodimentsand/or implementations. Rather, the systems and methods of the presentdisclosure are susceptible to various modifications, variations and/orenhancements without departing from the spirit or scope of the presentdisclosure. Accordingly, the present disclosure expressly encompassesall such modifications, variations and enhancements within its scope.

1.-13. (canceled)
 14. A maintenance system, comprising: wellsiteequipment located at or nearby a wellsite wherein the equipmentcomprises equipment health status data, a communication interface devicefor monitoring equipment health status data; a database comprising priorhealth status of the equipment; and a central data server incommunication with the database and the communication interface device,wherein the server or device performs analysis including comparing theequipment health status data with the prior health status.
 15. Themaintenance system of claim 14, further comprising a communicationnetwork at or nearby the wellsite.
 16. The maintenance system of claim14, wherein the communication interface device is handheld.
 17. Themaintenance system of claim 14, wherein the communication interfacedevice stores the monitored data prior to transmitting said monitoreddata.
 18. The maintenance system of claim 14, wherein health statuscomprises current operation of equipment, past operation of equipment,prior maintenance operations performed or a combination thereof.
 19. Themaintenance system of claim 18, wherein analysis comprises trending thehealth status over time.
 20. The maintenance system of claim 14, whereinthe database is located away from the wellsite.
 21. The maintenancesystem of claim 14, wherein a user manual for performing maintenance ona component of the equipment is electronically accessible to the dataacquisition device.
 22. A maintenance system for planning maintenanceand operation of wellsite equipment units, comprising: a fleet ofmonitored wellsite equipment units distributed over a geographical area;a communication interface device located at or nearby a wellsite whereat least one of the fleet of monitored wellsite equipment units arelocated, wherein the communication interface device comprises hardwareand software for monitoring data that is representative of a healthstatus of the equipment; a communication network for sending andreceiving the data between the communication interface device and acentral data server; and wherein the central data server is capable ofidentifying if the monitored wellsite equipment units are in operation,not in operation or being maintained in order to plan maintenance andoperation of the fleet of monitored wellsite equipment units.
 23. Themaintenance system of claim 22, further comprising a fleet ofmaintenance facilities distributed over a geographical area.
 24. Amethod for tracking wellsite equipment maintenance data, comprising:rigging up a plurality of wellsite equipment units at or nearby awellsite; scanning a unique machine-readable tag of at least one of thewellsite equipment units; collecting data into a communication interfacedevice, wherein the data is representative of a health status of thescanned wellsite equipment unit; transmitting the data to a central dataserver for generating analysis of the wellsite equipment units, whereinsaid analysis includes comparing the monitored data with the priorhealth status to prescribe if maintenance is required.
 25. The method ofclaim 24, further comprising generating a work order based on theprescribed list of maintenance.
 26. The method of claim 24, furthercomprising performing maintenance according to the prescribed list ofmaintenance.